Nyandarua county’s upcoming headquarters in Ol Kalou is in limbo after the Kenya Railways Corporation moved in to reclaim its lands to pave way for the reconstruction of the rail.
Storeyed buildings, churches, boutiques, groceries and roadside market sheds were not spared during the mid-morning demolitions that left the county headquarter a shell of a town, leaving the residents dismayed.
While criticising the demolitions that were hurried, County Women Representative Faith Gitau called on the government to compensate those affected as they had leased out the land from the KRC and their leases had not expired.
Gitau called on the county government to prioritize construction of Jua Kali sheds and markets to relocate the affected businesses, regretting that the destruction had retracted development of the marginalized county.
Ol Kalou MP David Kiaraho noted that the leases were genuine and proper notice was to be given before the demolitions.
His sentiments were echoed by Ol Kalou MCA Ken Mukira who threatened to mobilise all traders to occupy the newly constructed market and the stadium to find space for trade.
The residents decried the demolitions, saying adequate notice was not given for them to vacate their premises.
Peter Githinji, a trader in the town, noted that the plan that allowed the huge pieces of land as reserves for the railway were colonial, calling on the government to redesign the town.
John Nganga said 30 metres are enough for reserves as trains are not like lorries that will derail to the 400 metres allowance that they are demanding along Ol Kalou- Ndunduri road.
County Commissioner Benson Leparmorijo said notices were issued as early as 2019, with many unscrupulous traders taking advantage to cash in on the reserves.
He said that they had begun removing all the encroachments from the Gilgil-Nyahururu railway line ahead of its revitalization by the government.
Leparmorijo, while noting that the exercise had been halted temporarily, said that enough time will be given to the affected persons to vacate the premises.